- I'm Master Corporal Emma Galloway from London, Ontario.
I'm a Medical Technician currently posted to 2 Field Ambulance in Petawawa, Ontario.
(narrator): Whether it's in the heat of battle in a war-torn nation,
or a relief effort in the aftermath of an earthquake,
in the Canadian Armed Forces, the role of Medical Technician
takes on dimensions never imagined on a city street.
- Big difference between a civilian paramedic and a military Medical Technician
is as a military Medical Technician, we do a lot of different jobs.
So one day you're working in a clinic; you can move out to work in the field;
you can also work on aircraft, fixed-wing and helicopters,
as well as, could be working on ships.
So the environment changes and the scope of your job can change as well
based on those environments.
(narrator): They are a critical part of the Canadian Armed Forces healthcare team,
working with doctors, nurses, and physician assistants
to provide acute and chronic healthcare services to Forces members.
The job of a Med Tech can be diverse and adventurous.
(Galloway): The stress and excitement is definitely something that draws me to this job.
Knowing that I can be the difference in someone's life is very rewarding.
(narrator): They do everything from patient screening
to clinical care or pre-hospital emergency care
on a general day-to-day basis.
When Medical Technicians deploy,
they provide the full spectrum of care to all military members serving on the mission.
- Our training is very trauma-focused and very battlefield trauma-focused.
We focus on gunshot wounds, blast injuries, shrapnel injuries
versus more car accidents and things that you would see on the civilian street.
(narrator): The training, experience, and level of responsibility
is equal to or greater than what one would expect in comparable civilian occupations,
but the Forces offers paid education and opportunities to travel.
- One, two, three, we're going to roll!
(Galloway): A Medical Technician has more responsibility
than our civilian paramedic counterparts.
We can be pushed out by ourselves.
So it's our responsibility to identify what's going on with the member
so that we can be on the phone with a clinician,
so whether that's a Physician Assistant or a Medical Officer,
to be able to make sure that when that patient gets to that next level,
the care that they need is already ready to go for them.
- Pelvis stable.
(narrator): Military medics earn a salary while they are in training
and then walk right into their careers.
No student loans; no job search.
There are also opportunities for Med Techs in the Primary Reserve,
serving part-time in their local community
while going to school or working at a civilian job.
- I was a paramedic before I joined, for three years.
And then I decided to join the military to give myself more opportunity
to further advance my medical skills.
For me, the most exciting part of my job is getting to do my job
on the back of a helicopter.
They know when there's a helicopter coming in to get someone, it's very, very serious.
I fly on the Griffon as well as the Chinook helicopter,
and there's nothing better than coming in on a helicopter.
(narrator): On completion of their occupational training,
new Med Techs will be posted to a healthcare unit on a Canadian Armed Forces base.
- My biggest advice to anybody coming through those first couple of years
is to just absorb all the information that you can,
learn every skill that you can,
because it'll make your life so much easier down the road.
(narrator): Medical Technicians in the Forces have opportunities to train with civilian agencies
to maintain and improve their skills.
On occasion, military medics will ride along with civilian paramedics in an ambulance.
As their careers progress, Medical Technicians may have the opportunity
to pursue a range of specialized qualifications,
including working as a secondary Search and Rescue asset
with the Combat Support Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force,
or in aeromedical evacuation with the Canadian Medical Emergency Response Team,
or with the Special Operations Forces.
- I would definitely say, in my opinion, that our job is a fun job.
I get to work with a lot of different people.
I get to be doing a lot of different things.
I've been up to the Arctic, I've been over in Africa,
I've been around Europe with the military.
None of these things I would have been able to do
if I hadn't joined the Canadian Armed Forces.